Melrose Park Bank Robbery Suspect Charged In Roseland Murder

Surveillance photo of a man who robbed a bank branch in Melrose Park on July 2, 2013. Eric Murchinson, 44, has been charged in that robbery, as well as a fatal stabbing in Chicago's Roseland neighborhood the same day. (Credit: FBI)

CHICAGO (STMW) — A South Side man convicted of robbing a west suburban Melrose Park bank last year has been charged with fatally stabbing a woman in Roseland the same day as the robbery.

Eric Murchinson, 44, was charged Thursday with one felony count of first-degree murder in the July 2, 2013, stabbing death of a 64-year-old woman at her home about 10:15 a.m. in the 10800 block of South Calumet Avenue, according to a statement from Chicago Police.

Officers responding to a well-being check on July 5 found the woman lying in a garage unresponsive with a stab wound to the throat, police said.

Aurelia Wilborn was pronounced dead at the scene at 10:35 a.m., according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office. An autopsy performed the next day found that she died of an incise wound to the neck and her death was ruled a homicide.

Murchinson, of the 10900 block of South Edbrooke Avenue, is scheduled to appear in bond court Friday, police said.

The alleged stabbing happened the same day Murchinson robbed a bank in Melrose Park, authorities said.

According to a federal criminal complaint filed that day in U.S. District Court in Chicago, a robber walked into the Fifth Third Bank branch at 2501 W. North Ave. in Melrose Park at 10:38 a.m.

He approached a teller and inquired about purchasing a vehicle sticker, a statement from the FBI said at the time. He then demanded cash and indicated he had a weapon, although no weapon was shown. The teller handed over about $8,000 that he placed in a red bank bag before running out.

According to the complaint, three witnesses who were at the Hooters restaurant next door to the bank, saw a man run into the parking lot and approach a gray 4-door Lexus. The man was clutching a red bag to his chest and they saw a puff of red mist coming from the bag. He threw something from the bag, then got into the Lexus and drove away.

At the same time, the complaint said, a Melrose Park police officer at a Starbucks in the same strip mall heard about the robbery on his police radio. He met the witnesses, who pointed out the Lexus, which was stopped at the red light at 25th and North.

The officer ran toward the Lexus and drew his weapon. As he approached, he yelled through the open car windows for the driver to raise his hands. The driver raised his hands, but at the same time accelerated into the intersection, colliding with another car.

After the crash, police apprehended Murchinson, who was the only person in the Lexus, according to the complaint. Police found a red bank bag and cash on the floor, covered in red dye.

Murchinson pleaded guilty to the bank robbery in December, according to federal court records. He remains in custody at the Metropolitan Correctional Center, and is scheduled to be sentenced April 11.